But despite Ali forgetting his wife-to-be's credentials, their relationship was not questioned.

And the 'happy couple' managed to cover up their mistakes and were free to book their nuptials.

The sham ceremony was only called off at the last moment, when the registrar asked if anyone present knew of any lawful impediment.

At that moment, journalist Paul Connolly, who was posing as Harriet's best man, stepped up and revealed they had filmed the entire process.

Ali then flees the scene as quickly as possible in dramatic footage that will be shown on Channel 5 tonight.

PIECE OF CAKE: Reporters Paul Connolly and Harriet Morter showed how easy it was to set up a scam wedding [C5]

Before the ceremony the unsuspecting groom had revealed his reasons for wanting to stay in the UK.

Harriet said: "I think every sham marriage case is different.

"Some people are concerned about going back to their country for series reasons.

"But I think there is a fine line between greed and desperation.

"And I think in every case you have to judge it differently.

"I didn't feel sorry for Ali in this case because he made it quite clear why he wanted that visa.

"He didn't have any particular reason to get away he just wanted a UK lifestyle."

He even revealed that he had been living on a student visa, despite the fact he never attended classes in over two years, and admitted to doing illegal ‘cash in hand’ work.

"He is in this country and fair enough if he wants to work but he hasn't got the correct visa and he's not paying his tax," said Harriet. "Everyone else plays by the rules so why should he."

This story might seem shocking but it is becoming worryingly common in parts of Britain.

And earlier this year the Home Office released a statement saying sham marriages are ‘spiralling out of control’ in the UK.

In fact, there are as many as 10,000 fake weddings carried out each year. And the problem is particularly high in London where around one on five marriages are believed to be fake, according to superintendent registrar Mark Rimmer.

"I’ve always believed that the numbers of marriages that are potentially sham are absolutely enormous," he said. "In London, we actually see it ourselves, we see that possibly one in five of our marriages are suspicious.

"The goal is always the British passport. It’s actually like gold dust," he added.

The Sham Wedding Crashers will be shown on Channel 5 tonight (October 30) at 9pm